Document Accessibility Guide

Microsoft Word
Government Information Services,
Knowledge, Information,
Research and Technology
Department of Internal Affairs
Te Tari Taiwhenua
http://webtoolkit.govt.nz
web.standards@dia.govt.nz

Web Document Accessibility Guide Microsoft Word 2
Contents
Introduction 3
Styles 4
Alternative Text 4
Tables 5
Links 5
Bullets and Numbering 5
Font Size 6
Color 6
Table of Contents 6
Foreign Text 7
Simple Language 7
Paragraphs 7
Text Boxes 7
Spell Check 7
Graphics 8
Adobe Acrobat Pro 8
Web Document Accessibility Guide Microsoft Word 3
Introduction
This document is directed at Microsoft Word users. It provides a list of best practice
techniques designed to increase the accessibility of Word documents. Some of the
accessibility suggestions in this guide are also designed to assist with the conversion of
Microsoft Word to PDF.
Note: 100% accessibility is not guaranteed, but by following the techniques in this guide, the
document created should be more accessible.
Who Benefits?
Document accessibility helps people using assistive technologies, e.g., screen readers, but
they are not the only beneficiaries. People with moderate to low vision also benefit from
document accessibility, as do the elderly and those with cognitive and motor impairments.
Structured Content
The main way to increase a Microsoft Word documents accessibility is to add structure. It is
the structure that allows assistive technologies like screen readers to read the document.
Furthermore, the content's structure is translated into a PDF file, which helps make the PDF
more accessible.
Efficiency
Document accessibility is most effective when it is incorporated from the beginning of the
document creation process. It is far more efficient to create an accessible document from
the outset, rather than trying to retrofit a document for accessibility after it has been
created.
More Information
For additional information on producing accessible documents in different versions of
Microsoft Word and other office software, see the Accessible Digital Office Document
(ADOD) Project.
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Styles

Always use styles to format text e.g. Headings, Bulleted List.
Styles are useful as they can provide contextual information, e.g., some screen readers
will read out Heading 1 along with the heading text so that users can gain an
understanding of the relative importance of the heading.
Use headings in a logical order so that Heading 1 is always followed by Heading2 and
Heading 2 is followed by Heading 3 or another Heading 2. Otherwise a screen reader
user may think theyve missed a heading or they may get confused by the order.
Alternative Text

Screen readers only read text, so any non-text content that is used to convey meaning
needs to have a text equivalent.
Decorative content does not require alternative text e.g., graphics that do not provide
any additional meaning.
A good way to write useful alternative text is to imagine you are describing the image
to an elderly relative over the telephone.
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Tables
Use the default Microsoft Word functionality
to create tables.
Try to make table as simple as possible
screen readers and other assistive
technologies do not cope well with complex
tables avoid nested tables.
Structure tables so they make sense when
read from left to right, top to bottom this is
how screen readers read tables.
If you must use complex tables, provide a
description above the table to serve as a
summary or text alternative for the tables
main points.
Use % for the table size so that the table can
resize when viewed in different screen or
page sizes.
Tables with column headings in the top row must have the top row formatted as a
header row select the top row of header cells in the table, and then check Repeat as
header row at the top of each page in the Table Properties.
Links
Links should have meaningful names that describe to the user where they will go and
what they will find.
Avoid using phrases such as click here for link text.
Position the most important link at the top of the document so that it can be
immediately found by document users. For example:
Bullets and Numbering
Always use bullets to mark important points, and
numbersfor ordered lists e.g., steps in a process. This
type of formatting makes it easier for people to read
information who have visual impairments (who dont
use screen readers), and people with cognitive
disabilities.
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Font Size
Ensure that the font size is sufficient a minimum font size of 12 points is
recommended to cater for people with low vision and cognitive disabilities.
Color
Be careful with colour contrast never use similar colours next to each other. A white
background with black font is the best colour contrast you can get
Dont rely on colour exclusively to convey meaning, for example, the line graph below
uses colour to denote different trends but some readers (e.g., colour blind ) may not
be able to recognise the distinction. Use patterns and symbols to define different
meanings in addition to colour.

Table of Contents
For a large document, use a table of contents. This
provides an excellent navigation aid for users and if the
document has been structured correctly with the
appropriate use of headings, it is very easy to create.
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Foreign Text
If the document contains foreign text:
1. Select the foreign text and mark it with the
appropriate language
2. Select Tools/Language/Set Language or
Review tab, Proofing Group, Set Language.
This allows screen readers to more accurately
pronounce the text, which may aid comprehension.
Simple Language
A common criticism of government documents is overly complex language. New
Zealand has varying degrees of literacy, not all readers will be native English speakers,
and we have three official languages (English, Mori and NZ Sign Language). Try to
keep language simple.
Paragraphs
Avoid dense paragraphs of text as this may
reduce the readability of the document for
visually impaired and cognitively disabled
readers. Lots of white space is good, but dont
use the Enter key to create this use the
Spacing Before and Spacing After paragraph
properties instead. Also, avoid uppercase text
and justified alignment.
Text Boxes
Text boxes are floating objects in Microsoft Word and have no fixed position, so when
the document is converted to a PDF, textboxes are placed behind other objects. Screen
readers will ignore the text in the box or they may be read the text in the wrong place.
They are unpredictable and should be avoided.
Spell Check
Always check the document for spelling to avoid screen readers
mispronouncing incorrectly spelled words.
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Graphics
If you use graphics, remember to add
alternative text if the graphic provides
meaning to the document.
If wrapping text around the graphic, adjust
the Distance from text in the image
properties to add extra white space to
ensure that the graphic will be recognized
when converted into a PDF document.
Adobe Acrobat Pro
Adobe Acrobat Pro is the only software to date that will adequately convert the structured
content from the Microsoft Word document into a PDF document to make it accessible.
To convert your Microsoft Word document into PDF format use the Adobe Acrobat Pro plug-
in installed in Microsoft Word:
1. Select Change Conversion Setting from the Adobe PDF tab in Microsoft Word
2. On the Settings Tab select the checkboxes: Bookmarks, Links and Enable Accessibility
and reflow
3. On the Word tab, select the checkboxes: Convert cross references, Convert footnote
and endnote links and Enable advanced tagging
4. On the Bookmarks tab, select the check box: Convert Word Headings to Bookmarks,
then Set the proper indent levels
5. Save the file as Adobe PDF
Note: After a Microsoft Word document has been converted to PDF format, open Adobe
Acrobat Pro and run a full accessibility check. It is most likely that additional work will be
needed to improve the accessibility of the PDF file.